Categoria: Genesis

Upon his father’s death Joseph threw himself upon him, wept and kissed him. Then he directed the doctors to commence the 40-day embalming process and the Egyptians mourned for 70 days. After this Joseph communicated his father’s wish to be buried in the land of Canaan to Pharoah which he supported. So Joseph departed accompanied by all the dignitaries of Egypt, all his household and his brothers. This very large crowd travelled together with chariots and horsemen and when they arrived near the River Jordan they observed a further 7 days of mourning. Then they proceeded to the family ancestral burial cave in Canaan where they buried Jacob before all returning to Egypt. However Joseph’s brothers feared retribution for their evil acts of the past from Joseph now that their father was dead and buried but Joseph reassured them that this would not happen. Joseph and all the family remained in Egypt where Joseph died and was buried at the age of 110.

Jacob called all his sons around him to speak to them prophetic blessing as he was about to depart this life. First he spoke to his firstborn Reuben who excelled in honour and power but whose tribe will no longer excel because of his sin in Genesis 35:22. Next he spoke to Simeon and Levi who were two of a kind. They were cursed by Jacob for their violent vendetta of Genesis 34. Then came the lion of the tribes, Judah, “whose blessing in length and eloquence is only matched by that of Joseph, which it far outdistances in its range of prophecy. It is a miniature of the biblical scheme of history.” (Kidner) It predicts leadership of the nations for Judah, and involves the exuberant abundance of the golden age of the Coming One. Jacob then blessed Zebulun, Issachar and Dan with brief comments. Dan’s call was to judge, but his choice as a tribe was violence and treachery as in Judges 18. This was followed by brief words to Gad, Asher and Naphtali before launching in to eloquent words to Joseph, remembering his past tribulations but focusing on his victories through trust in God.  Thus copious blessings are called down upon Joseph for the future. Then came the final brief blessing for Benjamin. Jacob then reminded the family that he wanted to be buried in the ancestral burial cave near Mamre in Canaan and then he breathed his last.

Jacob became ill as he approached death so Joseph took his 2 sons Manasseh and Ephraim to see him. Jacob recalled God’s blessing given to him at Bethel when he promised him his great increase in numbers and the everlasting possession of Canaan. Jacob said that Joseph’s 2 sons born to him in Egypt would be part of his heritage, as he sat them on his knees kissing and embracing them. Then Jacob blessed Joseph and his boys but he inverted the sons’ blessings giving Ephraim the firstborn’s blessing instead of Manasseh. Joseph tried to correct him but Jacob insisted on it being that way in a gently ironic way remembering Jacob’s history.

Joseph presented 5 of his brothers to Pharoah and then presented his 130-year-old father. Pharoah told them they could live in the best land in Goshen and Jacob blessed Pharoah twice. Jacob and his people all received food to help them survive the drought. The famine continued and people began to run out of money to purchase food from the government stores so Joseph started to receive the people’s livestock in exchange for food. When the livestock ran out Joseph accepted the people themselves and their land in exchange for food, and reduced all the people to slavery. But Joseph distributed seed for everyone to plant on the condition that 20% of the produce would go to the Pharoah. Meanwhile the Israelites prospered in Goshen and greatly increased in number. When Jacob approached his death at the age of 147 he made Joseph swear that he would bury him when he died in his ancestral burial place in Canaan.

Israel (Jacob) set out for Egypt and when he reached Beersheba he offered a sacrifice to God. Then God spoke to him in a dream and told him not to fear going to Egypt because there he would make him a great nation before bringing him back again to Canaan. However God said Joseph would be with him at his death in Egypt. So Jacob left Beersheba and went to Egypt with all his family, livestock and possessions. Jacob’s descendants who went with him to Egypt were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun and their sons (these were the sons born to Leah and the total number of sons and daughters was 33). Then came Gad, Asher and their sons (who were born to Zilpah who was the handmaiden to Leah – which totalled 16 children). Then came Joseph, Benjamin and sons (totalling 14 children born to Rachel). Finally there were Dan, Naphtali and sons (totalling 7 born to Rachel’s maid Bilhah). So Jacob’s descendants were 66, not including his daughter-in-laws, but adding Joseph’s family born in Egypt the total number of Israelites in Egypt at this time was 70. Joseph got on his chariot and rode out to meet the party and he threw his arms around his father and wept for a long time.

Joseph could not bear it any longer, so finally told his brothers who he was, and they froze in silent fear! But Joseph told them not to be afraid because all that had happened had been part of God’s plan to save lives. Joseph then told them to go and get his father and all his people, flocks and herds so that he could care for them in the 5 years of famine which were still ahead. Joseph wept and hugged Benjamin and kissed all his brothers. When Pharoah got to hear about this family reunion he was thrilled and told them to bring Jacob and all to enjoy the fat of the land. So the brothers travelled to Canaan and gave their father the wonderful news that Joseph was alive as the governor of all Egypt! At first he couldn’t believe it, but when he saw all the carts that convinced him, and he agreed to go to Egypt to see Joseph before he died.

As it approached the time for the brothers to return to Canaan Joseph had their sacks of grain filled to the brim, with each man’s silver returned in each sack. Joseph also instructed his servants to put his own silver cup in the mouth of Benjamin’s sack. So at dawn the men got on their donkeys and left, but they hadn’t got far when they were caught up and halted by Pharoah’s steward who accused them of the theft of Pharoah’s own silver cup which he used for divination. The men strongly denied any such thing, but the steward searched sack by sack, starting with the eldest, and of course the cup was in the last sack belonging to Benjamin. They were all devastated and returned to the city. When they faced Joseph they all thought they would now be taken into slavery but Joseph said that just Benjamin would be his slave. With this Judah pleaded with Joseph that he take his youngest brother’s place as their return without Benjamin would kill their father.

When Jacob’s food was running out he asked his sons to return to Egypt for more supplies but he was very reticent to allow Benjamin to go with them. However Judah convinced his father that there was no alternative as Joseph had demanded it. So the 10 sons went back to Egypt taking gifts with them and were received by Joseph, who organized lunch for them at his house, where Simeon (who had been detained by Joseph) was able to join them. Upon seeing Benjamin Joseph found it hard to control his emotions and had to leave the room to cry. Then lunch was served with Egyptians eating separately from Hebrews for cultural ritualistic reasons and Benjamin received 5 times as much as everyone else!

Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt so he sent 10 of his sons there to buy some, only keeping his youngest son Benjamin with him. Governor Joseph recognized them when they arrived but they didn’t recognize him in robes and speaking Arabic using an interpreter. He accused them of being spies and imprisoned Simeon as a guarantee of their return. For he demanded that they return with their younger brother Benjamin as proof of their honesty, thus proving that they were not spies. Joseph then dispatched then with grain, but returned their payments inside their sacks. However Jacob refused to allow than to return to Egypt with Benjamin.

Two years later, when Joseph was 30-years old, Pharoah had 2 dreams which none of his wise men could interpret. In the first there were 7 beautiful fat cows that were swallowed by 7 ugly thin cows. In the second dream Pharoah dreamt of 7 healthy heads of corn which were swallowed by 7 unhealthy heads of corn. It was then that Pharoah’s chief cupbearer remembered how Joseph had interpreted his dream in the prison and he told Pharoah. So Pharoah called Joseph who, clearly giving the glory to God, interpreted the dreams. He said that both dreams meant the same thing which is that Egypt would have 7 years of abundant harvests followed by 7 years of famine. Joseph added that Pharoah needed to appoint someone to oversee the storage of grain in the years of plenty so that they have enough for the years of famine. Pharoah was so pleased with the interpretation, with the help of God, that he appointed Joseph himself to be in charge of everything in Egypt and to implement the harvest storage plan. Joseph was given total authority and Pharoah even gave him Asenath as his wife, with whom he had 2 sons Manasseh and Ephraim. So Joseph set about the storage of the abundant harvest of the 7 years of plenty so that when the famine came everyone was cared for, including neighbouring countries also affected by the drought.

Pharoah’s chief cupbearer and chief baker offended their master so he put them both in prison (where Joseph was) where they had simultaneous dreams. The cupbearer dreamt of a vine with 3 branches which produced grapes which he squeezed into Pharoah’s cup and gave it to him. With God’s help Joseph interpreted the dream saying that the 3 branches meant that in 3 days time Pharoah would restore him to his post of chief cupbearer. Joseph asked him to put a word in for him with Pharoah once he was released because he was in jail unjustly. The baker dreamt that he had on his head 3 baskets of bread which birds came and ate. Joseph interpreted this dream too saying that it meant that in 3 days time Pharoah would hang him and that birds would come and eat his flesh. 3 days later it was Pharoah’s birthday and he held a big party where he restored the cupbearer to his role but he had the baker hanged just as Joseph’s interpretations of the dreams had foretold. Sadly though the cupbearer forgot about Joseph.

Joseph was a slave in Egypt working for one of Pharoah’s officials called Potiphar. Potiphar soon realized that God was with Joseph and gave him success in everything he did. So Potiphar put Joseph in charge of his household and entrusted to him everything he owned. However Joseph was well-built and handsome and Potiphar’s wife fancied him and tried to start an affair! Joseph firmly resisted her constant attempts to have sex with him because it was sin and because it would be a betrayal of his master’s trust in him. One day Potiphar was away, and no servants were about, so again Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph and get him into bed with her, but Joseph ran away leaving his cloak behind in the rush. The woman in her anger grabbed the cloak, twisted the story and told her husband that it was Joseph that had tried to rape her. Potiphar was furious and sent Joseph to jail. However God remained with Joseph and soon he was given a position of authority within the prison.

Judah married the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua and she gave him 3 sons: Er, Onan and Shelah (daughters hardly get a look in in the book of Genesis!). Years later Judah got a wife called Tamar for his first born Er, but he was wicked so God killed him. Thus in this chapter there ensued a battle for Tamar’s right to be the mother of Judah’s heir. Judah called on Er’s brother Onan to perform the cultural duty of a brother-in-law producing offspring for his deceased brother, but he used to have sex with Tamar but ejaculated onto the ground. This displeased God so he killed Onan too. This left one brother-in-law Shelah but he was too young. Many years later Tamar dressed as a prostitute and put on a veil and tricked her father-in-law into having sex with her and she became pregnant without him realizing who she was. Tamar was given Judah’s seal, cord and staff as part of her payment. 3 months later Judah found out that Tamar was pregnant and Judah wanted to burn her to death! However he soon changed his mind when Tamar produce his seal, cord and staff proving that he was the father of the child. Judah admitted that Tamar was within her rights as he had failed to send his son Shelah to be her husband. So Tamar gave birth to twins: Zerah and Perez.

Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons because he was born to him in his old age, and he made him a special richly ornamented robe which made his brothers extremely jealous. Joseph dreamt that when binding sheaves of corn with his brothers, his sheaf rose and stood upright whilst all his brothers’ sheaves bowed down to it. The brothers’ jealousy and anger only grew with this as they accused Joseph of having intentions to rule over them. Then Joseph had a further dream in which the sun, moon and stars bowed down to him. His brothers’ jealousy grew even stronger but Israel kept the matter in his mind. Then one day Joseph went to see if his brothers were alright grazing the flocks near Dothan and when his brothers saw him coming in the distance their jealousy and anger led them to plot to kill him. Reuben convinced them not to kill him but they stripped him of his ornamented robe and threw him into an empty cistern. When some Midianite merchants came by the brothers sold Joseph to them as a slave for 0.2 kilos of silver and they took him to Egypt where they sold him to Potiphar who was Pharoah’s captain of the guard. They then dipped his coloured coat in blood and presented it to their father as evidence that he had been devoured by some wild beast so Israel wept and mourned Joseph’s presumed death.

This chapter is exclusively about Esau, his wives, sons, leaders and rulers, before returning to the central line of Jacob in the following chapter onwards. Esau is alternatively called Edom. Edom is like a nick name, hence the nation of the Edomites are the descendants of Esau. Esau had 3 wives from the women of Canaan: Adah, Oholibamah and Basemath. Esau went with them, their sons, daughters, all the members of their household and livestock to live in the hill country of Seir which is some distance from Jacob so as to give room for the livestock of them both. Esau’s sons were Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jalam and Korah. There ensues a list of Edomite chiefs who were descendants of Esau and then a list of kings of Edom who also were Esau’s descendants. Esau was therefore the father of the Edomites.

Under God’s instructions Jacob went to Bethel and built an altar. He instructed all his household to get rid of all foreign gods, purify themselves and change their clothes. Then once again God confirmed Jacob’s change of name to Israel and reconfirmed that his Abrahamic covenant was now applicable to him. Jacob set up a stone pillar to mark the place where God had spoken to him and called the place Bethel (means house of God). Having left Bethel they were on the way to Bethlehem when Rachel died in childbirth, though her son Benjamin survived. Israel (Jacob) travelled on to Migdal Eder where Reuben had sex with his father’s concubine Bilhah. Jacob found out but did nothing about it. Jacob had 12 sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun (by Leah); Joseph and Benjamin (by Rachel); Dan and Naphtali (by Bilhah); Gad and Asher (by Zilpah). Then Jacob came home to his father Isaac near Hebron and Isaac died there aged 180 so Esau and Jacob buried him.

Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob, was raped by Shechem who was the son of the regional ruler called Hamor the Hivite. Shechem asked his father to get Dinah for his wife because he loved her, but Dinah’s brothers were furious about Shechem’s act. Hamor tried to negotiate a solution for his son but Jacob’s sons replied deceitfully. They said the only deal they would agree to for Shechem to marry Dinah was that all the Shechmite males would have to be circumcised in order to permit intermarriage between the Israelites and the Shechemites. This was agreed, but it was a trick, and once all the males were in pain from circumcision 2 of Dinah’s brothers attacked them with swords killing Hamor, Shechem and all the male Shechemites! They looted the city and seized all their livestock, belongings, wives and children. Jacob was concerned that they had gone too far, but his sons insisted that it was the honourable thing to do because their sister had been treated like a prostitute.

As Jacob and Esau finally met, Jacob greeted Esau in a fearful formal way but Esau threw caution to the wind, embraced Jacob, threw his arms around his neck and kissed him! Then they both wept with emotion. There then ensued the introduction of Jacob’s wives and children before Esau asked what was the meaning of Jacob’s sending the livestock to him and Jacob said it was in order to find favour in his eyes. Esau said it wasn’t necessary, but upon Jacob’s insistence Esau ended up accepting the gifts. Esau then travelled to Seir and Jacob went to Succoth. Jacob went on to Shechem in Canaan where he bought a plot of land for 100 pieces of silver. There he pitched his tent and set up an altar which he called El Elohe Israel which means mighty is the God of Israel.

Jacob went on his way and tensely prepared to meet his twin brother Esau after 20 years. Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to sound him out, and the messengers returned to say that Esau was on his way to meet Jacob and family with 400 men. This made Jacob feel acutely afraid and he divided his people and flocks in two halves so as to prepare for a possible attack by Esau’s men. So Jacob prayed asking God for his protection and then he sent a gift to Esau of 200 female goats and 20 males, 200 ewes and 20 rams, 30 female camels with their young, 40 cows and 10 bulls, and 20 female donkeys and 10 males. All this was to pacify Esau as he knew he had wanted to kill him. That night Jacob stayed alone by the River Jabbok and had an extraordinary experience with God. A theophany occurred in which God appeared in human form and wrestled with Jacob during the whole night. “The conflict brought to a head the battling and groping of a lifetime, and Jacob’s desperate embrace vividly expressed his ambivalent attitude to God, of love and enmity, defiance and dependence. It was against God, and not Esau or Laban, that he had been pitting his strength”. (Kidner) God touched Jacob’s hip and left him limping, but Jacob would not stop until he received a blessing. So God changed his name to Israel, which means he struggles with God, and blessed him. And Jacob called the place Peniel (face of God). (Peniel Chapel was the name of my childhood/teenage church)

God blessed Jacob abundantly with his flocks and Laban and his sons became very jealous. So God told Jacob to leave. Jacob organized his wives, children and livestock and left Paddan Aram to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan, without telling Laban he was leaving. Rachel even took her father’s gods with her! Laban only discovered they had left 3 days later so he set off in pursuit and caught up with them a week later at Gilead. But God spoke to Laban in a dream not to speak harshly to Jacob. So Laban just complained about the way they had left without even letting him kiss his daughters and grandchildren goodbye, and especially complained about the theft of his gods. Laban searched for them but didn’t find them because Rachel was sat on top of them hidden in her saddle and she told her father she couldn’t stand up because she had a period! Nevertheless Jacob and Laban still argued about their past relationship, but eventually they agreed on making a mutual peace treaty or covenant, and then Laban left.

In the light of the fact that Rachel could not become pregnant she gave her maid Bilhah as a further wife to Jacob, so as to give him children on her behalf. Bilhah gave Jacob 2 sons called Dan and Naphtali. When Leah was no longer getting pregnant she too gave her maid Zilpah as yet another wife for Jacob and she gave him 2 sons too on behalf of Leah called Gad and Asher. However then Leah returned to having children and she gave 2 further sons to Jacob called Issachar and Zebulun. plus a daughter called Dinah. (This reminds me of a lovely young woman called Dinah Prata Conserva who used to be a member of the ACEV Patos church and who died very young) Then finally Rachel had a child and called him Joseph. Following this Jacob tried to leave Laban taking his family and possessions with him, but Laban insisted on doing a further deal with Jacob because he realized the blessing of God was on Jacob’s work which was advantageous to him. So Jacob proposed that he would care for Laban’s flocks as long as all the dark spotted lambs would be his (as opposed to the normally white sheep) and all the kids with white marking would be his (among the normally dark goats). This Laban readily agreed to as Jacob was opting for the far rarer possibility. Jacob sought to implement the old wives’ tale of prenatal conditioning by visual impressions, but the truth is that it was God who gave Jacob amazing blessing as he grew exceedingly prosperous coming to own large flocks, servants, camels and donkeys.

When Jacob arrived at Paddan Aram he met with Laban’s beautiful daughter Rachel and it was love at first sight! When Jacob told her who he was she ran to tell her father and he came and warmly welcomed Jacob. Having been there a month Laban asked Jacob what his wage should be for the work he was doing there, and he said he would work for 7 years in exchange for Rachel, which was agreed. When the time was up Laban organised a big party at the end of which Laban gave his other less shapely daughter Leah to Jacob. They slept together in the dark and it was only in the morning that he realised that he the deceiver had been deceived by his father-in-law! Laban only agreed to letting Jacob marry Rachel too in exchange for yet another 7 years’ work, and Jacob always loved her more than Leah! Rachel however did not get pregnant immediately, but Leah gave him 4 sons Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah. It was later forbidden to marry 2 sisters in each other’s lifetime according to Leviticus 18:18.

At the instigation of Rebeca, Isaac sent Jacob to find a non-Canaanite wife at the house of Rebeca’s father Bethuel at Paddan Aram. He told him to marry one of Laban’s (Rebeca’s brother) daughters. On the way there Jacob stopped somewhere for a night’s sleep and used a stone as a pillow. Then Jacob dreamt of a ladder going up from earth to heaven with angels going up and down on it, and at the top of the ladder was God who promised to give the land on which Jacob was lying to him. God also promised Jacob abundant offspring who would be a blessing to all peoples. Jacob awoke feeling he was in a very special place and in the morning he used his stone pillow to be a pillar, calling the place Bethel which means house of God. Jacob proceeded to ratify his covenant with God pledging a vow of allegiance and a tributary tithe. This proved to be Jacob’s Damascus Road experience turning the circumcised son of the covenant from seeking salvation by works to securing it through a faith-struggle that would lead to a new name.

When Isaac was old and blind he asked his eldest son Esau to hunt some game for him to eat so that when he brought it to him he could give him his blessing. Rebeca overheard the conversation and came up with a plan to deceive Isaac and get his blessing for her favourite son Jacob. She told Jacob to bring her some young goats so that she could prepare them as if they were game for Isaac, so that Jacob could present them to his father as if he was Esau. Jacob did this, put on some goat skin to make him seem as if he was hairy Esau, and carefully deceived Isaac into giving him his first-born blessing. When Esau finally arrived with his cooked game Jacob had already received Isaac’s blessing and left, and both Isaac and Esau were horrified when they realized what a deception had take place! However it was too late. The blessing had been given and Esau burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said that Jacob had both taken his birthright and blessing! Rebeca then sent Jacob to live with her brother Laban so as to be out of the reach of Esau who was furious with him and wanted to kill him.

There was a famine in Canaan and Isaac went for help from Abimelech king of the Philistines in Gerar. God told Isaac not to go to Egypt which had plenty but stay put and trust in him as God reiterated his covenant promises made to Abraham. So Isaac stayed in Gerar. Whilst there Isaac played the same game with his wife being his sister as had his father. Like father like son! However the truth about Rebeca came to light before any sexual involvements occurred though Abimelech was most annoyed by the incident. Isaac planted crops in the land and received a bountiful harvest which added greatly to his wealth. The Philistines envied Isaac and filled their wells with earth, so Abimelech asked Isaac to move away and he moved to the Valley of Gerar. There Isaac re-opened the wells the Philistines had blocked up and gave them back their original names. Then Isaac’s servants dug a fresh water well but this was disputed by the Gerar herdsmen so Isaac called it Esek (means dispute). They successfully dug another well but this again was disputed so he called it Sitnah (means opposition). Finally they managed to dig an undisputed well so Isaac called it Rehoboth (means room). Then Isaac went up to Beersheba where God appeared to him and promised his blessing. Isaac built an altar there, dug another well and called upon the name of the Lord. Then Abimelech and his men came and proposed a peace treaty with Isaac and they agreed to swear an oath to this end. When Esau was 40 years of age he married both Judith and Basemath and they were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebeca.

After Sarah died Abraham married Keturah and she gave Abraham 6 sons. Abraham died aged 175 and he left everything he owned to Isaac, but while he was still living he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines. Isaac and Ishmael buried their father in the cave alongside Sarah. Ishmael eventually died aged 137 having been the father of 12 sons. Isaac married Rebekah aged 40 but they only had children 20 years later when Rebekah had twins to make up for lost time! Hairy Esau was born first and then came his brother named Jacob. Esau became a skilful hunter whilst Jacob was a quieter sort staying more at home. Isaac loved Esau but Rebekah loved Jacob. One day Jacob was cooking lentil stew and Esau came in famished so he asked for some. Jacob agreed as long as Esau gave him his birthright to which he agreed.

This is a romantic chapter. Abraham got his chief servant to solemnly swear to him that he would travel to find his son Isaac a wife. For Abraham did not want Isaac to marry a local Canaanite but wanted him to marry someone of his original family stock. The servant asked what he should do if the girl would not go with him, and Abraham answered that God would send an angel before him so that things would work out. Then the servant went with 10 camels and many gifts and travelled to Nahor where he stopped by a well and prayed for success in his mission. He asked that God would signal that he had found the right girl who came to the well by her offering him water and water for his camels. A beautiful virgin called Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel, approached the well so the servant asked her for water which she gave him as well as offering to water his camels. It was the sign he had asked of God! So he gave Rebekah a 5.5 gram gold nose ring and two 110 gram gold bracelets and went to spend the night at her father’s house. Rebekah’s brother Laban saw the nose ring and bracelets and warmly received the servant who proceeded to explain how and why he had come seeking a wife for Isaac. Laban and Bethuel accepted the proposal as of the Lord and agreed to the marriage, so the servant gave gold and silver jewellery and clothing to Rebekah. He also gave costly gifts to Rebekah’s brother and mother. The next day when the servant wanted to return to Abraham and Isaac with Rebekah there was some reticence by the family but Rebekah was resolute in her going. So Rebekah, her nurse and maids went with the family’s blessing riding camels to the land of Canaan. When Rebekah saw Isaac she covered her face with a veil, the servant told Isaac the whole story and Rebekah became his wife whom he loved very much.

At 127 years of age Sarah died at Hebron in the land of Canaan so Abraham mourned her death. Then Abraham proceeded to purchase a field with a cave from the Hittites (the sons of Heth) as a burial site which cost 4.5 kilos of silver, and he buried Sarah in the cave.

This chapter has one of the most amazing stories of the Bible. God told Abraham to go and sacrifice in a burnt offering his so long awaited son Isaac on Mount Moriah! Abraham set out with Isaac, 2 servants and a donkey and headed up the mountains. When they arrived at God’s chosen location Isaac queried where the lamb was for the sacrifice and his father replied that God would provide it. Abraham built the altar, laid out the wood on it, placed Isaac on top and raised his knife to kill him. In the nip of time the angel of the Lord stopped Abraham from doing it and expressed his pleasure with such proof that he feared God. Then Abraham sacrificed a ram caught in a nearby thicket and called the place ‘The Lord will provide’. The angel of the Lord then said that  because Abraham had obeyed in this way he would make his descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore.

At the ripe old age of 90 Sarah finally gave 100-year-old Abraham his covenant son Isaac (means he laughs) just as God had promised, and Abraham circumcised him when he was 8-days-old as his covenant with God demanded. When Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast but tensions arose with Hagar and Ishmael mocking. So Abraham sent them away at Sarah’s request and Ishmael almost died of thirst in the desert. However God showed Hagar a well, saved Ishmael who would become a great nation, he became an archer and married an Egyptian. A disagreement arose between Abraham and Abimelech over a well so they made a treaty at Beersheba (means either well of seven or well of the oath) over the matter with Abraham giving 7 lambs as a witness that it was Abraham who had dug the well. To mark the occasion Abraham planted a Tamarisk tree and called upon the name of the Lord.

Here is a repeat of what Abraham did in Genesis 12. Abimelech, the king of Gerar, fell for Sarah upon believing the lie that she was Abraham’s sister, and he took her (at 90 years of age… she must have been amazingly beautiful!) into his harem. God rebuked Abimelech in a dream before he had slept with her, and he pleaded his innocence prior to obeying God by returning Sarah to Abraham together with the gifts of sheep, cattle, slaves and 11.5 kilos of silver. This bizarre incident ended by Abraham praying for Abimelech’s  household’s healing.

The 2 angels from the previous chapter arrived at Sodom and Lot gave them hospitality. However after eating, but before they got to bed, the house was surrounded by men demanding to have sex with Lot’s visitors! Lot naturally resisted this as the men’s (angels) safety was his responsibility, and he offered his virgin daughters as a substitute for the men saying the mob could do what they liked with them! However the mob insisted on having the men, until the visitors (angels) caused the depraved mob to go blind putting an end to their folly. Following this the men/angels urged Lot and his family to flee Sodom because they were about to destroy it because of its depravity and sin. Lot’s future son-in-laws did not take this seriously so just Lot, his wife and 2 daughters escaped. So God rained down cataclysmic burning sulphur on Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed them and their inhabitants. However during their escape Lot’s wife looked back in hesitation and was engulphed by the molten material of the explosion. Lot and his 2 Sodom-tainted daughters went to live in a cave in the mountains where the daughters got their father drunk and had sex with him. The elder daughter had a son which she called Moab (Moabites) and the younger had a son which she called Ben-Ammi (Ammonites).

The first part of this chapter says God appeared to Abraham together with visitors. These 3 visitors are probably not a reference to the trinity but they are most probably God with 2 angels. The visitors were very warmly received with a lavish meal of veal, cakes baked on the open hearth, curd and milk in accordance with Bedouin culture and hospitality. God said that within a year Sarah would give Abraham a child and she laughed to herself at this unlikely happening at 90 years of age! The visitors then walked on in the direction of Sodom and Gomorrah and God said they were going there to investigate their reported grievous sin. When Abraham perceived the imminent divine judgement upon those places he interceded if there were at least 50 righteous people there in order to save the cities from destruction. This bargaining went on as not 50 or 45 or 40 or 30 or 20 or 10 could be found!

When Abram was 99 years old God came to him to confirm their covenant and changed his name to Abraham which means father of many. God confirmed the land of Canaan as Abraham’s family’s eternal possession, and also confirmed Abraham’s fruitful dynasty. God decreed that Abraham’s family’s side of the covenant was for all male babies to be circumcised when 8 days old. This was to be the mark of the covenant. God also changed Sarai’s name to Sarah, which means princess, and confirmed that she would yet give him a covenant son. At this Abraham roared with laughter at the thought of him having this son aged 100 and of Sarah finally giving birth at 90! However God insisted that Sarah would give Abraham a son which would be called Isaac which means he laughs, but confirmed that he would also bless Ishmael albeit in a lesser way. So all males in Abraham’s household were circumcised.

Abram’s wife Sarai suggested to Abram that he take her maid Hagar as a concubine, so as to solve the problem of his lack of an heir, and he agreed. Such practice was in keeping with the legal code and marriage practices of that era. However once Hagar became pregnant to Abram tensions grew between her and Sarai and she ended up going away. But an angel found Hagar and told her to return to Sarai. He told her to call her son about to be born Ishmael which means God hears. He said that Ishmael would be against everyone like a wild donkey! Abram was 86 years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

Abram had a vision in which God told him not to fear because his reward would be very great. Abram questioned this because he didn’t even have an heir. God replied that Abram would yet have a legitimate heir and his offspring would be as numerous as the stars, living in the land of Canaan. To confirm and guarantee this God carried out a covenant ritual with Abram involving the sacrifice of animals and birds. Amidst sleepiness and darkness God told Abram that his descendants would be enslaved in a foreign land (Egypt) for 400 years after which they would be released with great wealth. Then a theophany passed between the pieces of the sacrificed animals confirming God’s covenant promise to Abram that his descendants would inhabit the land between the river of Egypt to the river Euphrates.

This chapter relates the occurrences of wars between different kingly coalitions in the Middle East region and as part of this warring all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, where Lot was living, were seized and Lot was taken captive. When word reached Abram about this he mobilized 318 special forces, attacked Lot’s captors, recovered Lot’s possessions and released Lot together with his people. Having defeated Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him Abram met with the priest and king Melquizedek who blessed Abram for his victory. Abram gave Melquizedek a tithe of all his possessions. Then the king of Sodom tried to get Abram to keep the spoils of his battle, but Abram turned the offer down.

Abram, Sarai and Lot returned from Egypt to the Negev. Abram had become very wealthy in silver, gold and livestock and Lot had flocks and herds too, so that quarrelling developed between Abram and Lot’s herdsmen over pasture. Abram therefore magnanimously offered for Lot to choose which land he wanted so that they could go their separate ways and live in peace. Lot chose the whole plain of the Jordan and pitched his tents near Sodom, and so Abram settled in the land of Canaan. Then God told Abram that he would give that land to him and his offspring. And so Abram built an altar to the Lord at Hebron.

God called Abram to leave Haran and go to a land which he would show him. God said he would make Abram into a great nation and that all people on earth would be blessed through him. So at my age (75!) Abram left for the land of Canaan which God said he would give to Abram’s descendants, taking with him his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot and all his possessions. However a famine led Abram to temporarily move to Egypt and Abram invented a lie saying his beautiful wife Sarai was his sister, for fear of being killed by the Egyptians after his wife! Sure enough Pharaoh fell for Sarai and took her into his harem, showering her “brother” Abram with gifts of sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels and servants! The truth only came to light when God inflicted disease on Pharoah as a consequence of his inadvertent sin, and Abram and Sarai returned to Canaan with all their entourage.

The story of the Tower of Babel fits the linguistic situation immediately after the flood when there was one language, as opposed to the multi-lingual situation which was described in chapter 10. God was not pleased when he saw man building a city with a high tower to make a name for himself. God saw such an endeavour as an embodiment of an arrogant ungodly spirit and he deliberately confused their language so as to put a stop to it. It was called the Tower of Babel (Babylon) as it sounds like the Hebrew for confused. In the second part of this chapter the genealogical tree is traced from Noah’s son Shem down to Abram, Sarai his wife and Lot. They set out from Ur of the Chaldeans with Abram’s father Haran to go to Canaan, but they settled on the way at Haran.

This chapter lays out the 3 nations formed by the descendants of Noah’s sons Japheth (the Japhethites), Ham (the Hamites) and Shem (the Semites). The Japhethites’ territories had maritime links and they spoke a number of languages. In the Hamites’ territories they also spoke different languages and of note was their hunting capacity with Nimrod called a mighty hunter. The roots of Nineveh are in this nation as are the Philistines, the Canaanites and Sodom and Gomorrah. The Semites also had their own territories and languages, and from this nation came Abraham and Sarah.

After the flood God blessed Noah and his sons, told them to be fruitful and multiply, and encouraged hunting and fishing as means of supplying their sustenance. God clearly emphasized the sanctity of human life and Noah lived to 950 years of age. God established a covenant with Noah, his descendants and all wildlife, promising never again to flood the earth, and God gave the rainbow as the sign of this everlasting covenant. Noah planted a vineyard, got drunk on the wine and ended up laying naked in his tent. His son Ham (the father of Canaan) saw him and went and told his brothers Shem and Japheth. They got a garment to cover their father and walked in backwards so as not to see their father in the nude. When Noah awoke and discovered all that had gone on he was furious with Ham and cursed his son Canaan into slavery. On the other hand Noah was pleased with Shem and Japheth and blessed the Lord for them.

The flood water began to recede and the ark came to rest on the Ararat mountains as the mountain tops reappeared from the flood. Noah decided to send out birds to do reconnaissance work on the outside situation and when a dove brought back a leaf in its beak he knew that the waters had receded a lot. 7 days later he released the dove again and when it didn’t return he knew that the flood was completely over. God told Noah’s family together with all the animals and birds that they could now leave the ark. Noah built an altar to the Lord on which he offered burnt sacrifices and God vowed never to repeat his cursing of the earth or to destroy animal life.

Noah, at 600 years of age, his wife, his sons and their wives entered the ark under God’s instructions 7 days before the start of the rain. Pairs of all animals and birds also entered the ark. When the heavy rain started it lasted for 40 days and the resultant flood lasted for 5 months with even the mountains being submerged under 20 feet of water. All human beings, animals, birds and living creatures were exterminated by this flood except those in the floating ark.

With the growth of the earth’s population came corruption, sin and violence which saddened God’s heart. God’s initial reaction was to reduce mankind’s life expectancy to 120 years. However things only got worse making God increasingly angry. God was so sorry that he had ever made mankind, animals and birds that he decided to wipe them out. However Noah walked with God and found favour in his eyes. So the Lord decided to flood the earth but save Noah’s family plus animal life. God instructed Noah to build an ark 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high with a roof on top, which was to be Noah’s family’s means of escape together with breeding pairs of all animals. Noah obeyed God.

Chapter 5 contains genealogical details of Adam’s offspring. Everyone lived long lives then. Adam lived 930 years, his son Seth lived 912 years, Adam’s grandson Enosh lived 905 years, Adam’s great-grandson Kenan lived 910 years, Adam’s great-great-grandson Mahalalel lived 895 years, Adam’s great-great-great-grandson Jared lived 962 years, and Adam’s great-great-great-great-grandson Enoch did not die but was bodily translated into heaven as a result of his walk with God. Enoch’s son Methuselah was the record holder in longevity living 969 years, his son Lamech lived 777 years and he was the father of Noah about whom we will hear a lot in the following chapters. Noah had become the father of 3 sons by the time he was 500 years old which is not bad going! 😀

Adam and Eve’s first children were born and they were called Cain and Abel. These sons made offerings to the Lord but Cain’s offering was not pleasing to God. (Why the preference is not explained) Cain eventually murdered Abel as a consequence and was severely punished by God. Over time more children and grandchildren of Adam and Eve were born. (One granddaughter was Zillah whom I highlight because I had a very special maternal Aunt of this name).

Poetically personified as a snake, the forces of evil seduced Eve, and then Adam, to disobey God’s command not to eat of the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden. Such a fall into disobedience had catastrophic consequences on humanity and they were banished from the garden.

God, who had created man, Adam, from the dust of the earth and woman, Eve, from the man’s rib, gave them the job of caring for the Garden of Eden which he had created. God told them they could eat what they liked except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which would cause their death. The couple initially lived happily together as man and wife.

At the beginning of all things that we know the eternal God created everything and created the mechanisms for creation to develop and maintain itself. God created sun, moon, planets, stars, mountains, dry land, seas, flora and fauna. God created man and woman as his representatives and administrators of the earth.